Posted on 06/10/2010 10:00:41 PM PDT by topher
Early in 2010, I bought a new Roadmaster bicycle from Wal=Mart. This was a 26 inch Chinese made mountain bike (bicycle).
I had a number of problems with the bike from the start.
The brakes did not work and had to be worked on. In only two months, the brake pads were worn out -- something I had never since before. I have riding bikes -- on and off -- since learning during the presidency of Dwight David Eisenhower.
I took the foot pedals off to see if I could swap with pedals that had two straps.
Standard 26 inch mountain bikes have either 1/2 inch or 9/16 inch pedals. These were either 3/8 or 5/16 and I was afraid that these pedals would break and cause an expensive repair.
Then the tires were a problem that they were so loose that they would pop out of the rim.
The last straw was I needed the rims off of the bicycle for another bike.
After switching rims, the Chinamart rim buckled on a turn and threw me with enough force to break my arm.
Before it happened, I feared that the rim might just buckle from inferior design.
It should be said that Roadmaster Bikes shares in the blame. The scary thought is that I believe the parent company also owns Schwinn Bicycles.
Freepers,protect those arms!!!
It’s worth the money to buy a good bike, even if most of the Treks are still built in China.
36 spoke wheels are worth the extra money.
I had a Kia bike in the 70’s. Now they make cars!
Chinese bikes are like Bic pens.
Cheap and disposable.
Rule #1. If its made in China its cheap.
Rule #2. If its durable, well built and easily repairable it didn’t come from China.
I took the foot pedals off to see if I could swap with pedals that had two straps.
Should have been: TOE STRAPS
Guess I was a fool to buy a china-mart bike.
The good news is that you will get well soon.
I broke one ankle once and the other one twice.
I understand your pain.
I’m sure a lot of other freepers do too.
Walking is good and you don’t have to buy a thing except maybe
a good pair of walking shoes.
Good luck.
This. A cheap bike won't get you more than a real ride or two (maybe), and if you are lucky, no broken bones. Specialized are good, too. Supposedly they are made in Taiwan, not China.
Sounds like a bike that I bought at Tesco (British version of Walmart) This was in central Europe.
In my first trip along the Danube, in the first week, one peddle fell off, stripping the threads, so I could not put it back on.
The gears never worked as they should, and the sprockets
bent.
Fortunately, it was beyond repair and they refunded my money.
I then went to a real bike store and bought a Czech made bike.
It has been great, no problems at all, and is still like new, even after numerous road trips in Slovakia, and shipment to the Philippines.
I ride it every afternoon along the beach road.
You thought it was defective and unsafe but still rode it. Trust your own judgement.
I think not, I won’t buy anything expensive for my kids, they have no respect at all, everything gets trashed.
Buy a hi-end bike and it will get stolen quicker, buy a dirt cheap flashy gimmicky Chinese bike and they will be happy for awhile, and most kids get tired of anything pretty quick.
So I expect a certain amount of lifespan or longevity anyway, just have to figure how much you are willing to spend on something not worth repairing, just drop it off at a Goodwill, make a really poor kid happy. And give a job to somewhat that needs it at the same time.
somewhat=someone
Comparing a Walmart bike to a real bike is kind of unfair. You should not expect to get what you don’t pay for... Replacing the tires and tubes on a good bike costs half of the Walmart price of a bike.
Almost the same thing happened to me about 20 years ago on a Schwinn if I remember correctly. My buddy and I were being dumb kids and riding on a trail in the woods way beyond what our experience could handle.
Hit a stump, the wheel bent and I flew over the handlebars. My elbow came out the back of my arm and I walked home to mom in complete shock.
To this day I have about a 10" railroad track scar, my left arm is full of metal and won't bend straight.
Won't get on a bike anymore, now I switched to playing with firearms in my spare time, much safer hobby.
Who assembled the bike?
nice....I’m thinking of a singlespeed but can’t bring myself to go fixie, any opinions?
If Wal-Mart was unionized, they wouldn’t have these cheap bikes.
I have a Schwinn from about 2004, and have beaten the living daylights out of it on mountain trails. It seems to hold up just fine. I’m 175 lbs.
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